Happy Birthday, Dad!
John Benson Sr. celebrates his
birthday on Thursday, April 24th. We salute the man
who started it all by racing at the Speedrome!
Judy and John Benson Sr. Racing at the Speedrome
Congratulations to Tom Thomas!
For winning the Late Model Feature at Berlin
Raceway on Saturday, April 19th. He is starting
the season out right!
Photo By: Tom Devette
Testing at Berlin
Johnny attended the test session
at Berlin Raceway on April 9th from 5 - 9 pm. He joined Tom
Thomas, Terry VanHaitsma, Randy Sweet and others many laps
around the track to find the speed. Most of the school
districts around Grand Rapids are on "Spring Break" - but
spring is far from what the weather is delivery to us ...
It was 41 degrees at the end of practice very cold!
Darlington Testing Update
Johnny was happy with
the test session at Darlington. One thing he did
mention is that Travis Kvapil was testing for Roush, not
Joey Clanton as the article that was written by yahoo sports
had indicated.
Testing At Darlington
When Darlington Raceway president Chris
Browning heads into town, one fan question comes up more
than most: “When are the trucks coming back?” Maybe it
won’t be too long.
Five NASCAR Craftsman
Truck teams began a two-day test Tuesday at newly repaved
Darlington Raceway, according to track officials, even
though the series hasn’t raced there since 2004 and is not
on the schedule this season. Could the test mean
trucks are returning to “The Lady In Black?”
“I sure hope so,” said Johnny Benson, whose Bill Davis No.
23 Toyota Tundra took part Tuesday.
Darlington, with its
tire-chewing surface and misshapen corners, is not typically
the place NASCAR teams in any circuit would plan to
practice. But Benson said the new, smooth surface should
give truck teams some good information to use at future
races, such as the O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 in Kansas City on
April 26.
“If this were the way it
usually is, we wouldn’t be here,” Benson said.
Darlington held truck
events from 2001-04. The last one, won by Kasey Kahne, was
the track’s first race to finish at night after lights were
added to the facility.
Browning, who became
president in the middle of 2004, said a scheduling conflict
with Darlington’s Mother’s Day weekend slot prevented the
trucks from coming back. Plus, Darlington had its hands full
simply maintaining its place on the Sprint Cup schedule.
The track has undergone a
series of improvements since then, including the addition of
6,300 seats in the new Brasington Tower in turn one. When
Sprint Cup drivers show up next month for the Dodge
Challenger 500, they’ll also see a new infield access tunnel
along with track’s first repaving since 1995.
The projects were part of
a $10 million capital construction plan for the track, which
first hosted a NASCAR race in 1950. A Goodyear tire
test in March including Sprint Cup drivers Jeff Gordon, Greg
Biffle and Ryan Newman featured straightaway speeds topping
200 mph, Browning said.
In Benson’s first few laps
Tuesday, he said he reached 170.750 mph.
Also participating Tuesday
were Benson’s Bill Davis teammates, Mike Skinner and Phillip
McGilton, and the Roush Fenway Racing teams of Joey Clanton
and Erik Darnell.
In Browning’s mind, a
perfect Darlington weekend would include a U.S. Auto Club
Silver Crown series event Thursday night, the NASCAR trucks
on Friday night and the Sprint Cup cars Saturday night
“because of the diversity of the vehicles,” he said.
The USAC series opened
things at Darlington last spring with Aaron Pierce taking
the checkered flag. The series was scheduled again this May,
but canceled when the USAC returned to its more traditional
cars designed for layouts shorter than Darlington’s
1.366-mile distance.
Browning says the tests
Tuesday could push Darlington’s case that the trucks would
make a good show in 2009. He hopes to sit down with NASCAR
leaders to plot it out.
The trucks debuted in
Darlington in 2001 with the late Bobby Hamilton winning the
rain-shortened race. Benson remembers those past races at
Darlington, and how challenging it can be. “It’s
always a great race because this is such a unique place,”
Benson said.
Management
Reorganization at BDR
Bill Davis, President of
Bill Davis Racing (BDR), announced a reorganization of the
company's management team. Davis, who with wife Gail has
fielded teams in NASCAR for over 20 years, has added several
key personnel and shifted several others within the
organization. All changes are effective immediately. NASCAR
veteran Marty Gaunt has been named Vice President of Bill
Davis Racing. Gaunt, a native of Toronto, Ont., Canada,
began his tenure in NASCAR in 1996 and has held similar
positions at Penske Racing and Team Red Bull. Gaunt was also
part owner of Red Horse Racing. "It's an honor for me to
able to be a part of Bill Davis Racing with Bill and Gail,"
stated Gaunt. "Bill has fielded teams for 21 years now and
to be considered to be a part of the reorganization is a
great opportunity. I'm excited about the tasks at hand and
ready to get started."
Mark Chambers, who previously served as team manager of
BDR's Craftsman Truck Series effort, will now assume the
role of the general manager of Bill Davis Racing. Chambers,
who has been with the team since 2006, takes over the GM
role from Mike Brown, who will move into the position of
Chief Financial Officer.
"I'm confident the modifications we've made to our
management and front-office staff will make our entire
organization stronger," stated Davis. "Our Truck Series
program continues to thrive, but there isn't any doubt that
the Cup Series program has struggled this year. Our
partnership with Caterpillar is over 10 years strong, and we
owe it to them and to ourselves to make sure we have the
best possible people in the most important positions. We
have great partners in Caterpillar and Toyota and we hope to
continue our affiliation with them for many years to come.
I'm confident the changes we've announced today will ensure
a strong future for this team." In addition, Davis has hired
Jim Thomas as the organization's Director of Marketing.
Thomas, a Florida native, has been the Director of Business
Development for Sullivan Worldwide Marketing Group, a
leading strategic marketing and planning agency to the
United States motorsports industry. Prior to that, he spent
several years within the financial arm of Southeast Toyota.
Sunday to Be Junior's Day at Texas
By: Johnny Benson
As a
MSNBC contributor, Johnny has selected
Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win at Texas Speedway. To view the complete article -
Click Here.
Prelude Returns to Eldora Speedway
A supernova of racing talent will again
descend upon the Field of Dreams that is Eldora Speedway in
Rossburg, Ohio on June 4 when the dirt that made champions
out of A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti plays host to today’s
racing stars at the fourth annual Old Spice Prelude to the
Dream. And for those not lucky enough to grab a seat for the
dirt late model race featuring over 25 world renowned
drivers as they battle for dirt supremacy, HBO Pay-Per-View
will present the event live to the entire nation. Proceeds
from this telecast will support construction of Victory
Junction Gang Camp II in Kansas City, as well as the Tony
Stewart Foundation.
The all-star race will feature such racing icons as Tony
Stewart, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie
Johnson, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Mark
Martin, Denny Hamlin, Bobby Labonte and more. All will pilot
2,300-pound dirt late model stock cars capable of putting
out over 800 horsepower.
The live, commercial-free broadcast will begin at 7 p.m. ET
(4 p.m. PT), with an immediate replay and subsequent replays
throughout the week and the following weekend. HBO
Pay-Per-View’s racing telecast has a suggested retail price
of $24.95 and is available to more than 61 million
pay-per-view homes. HBO Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier
of event programming in the pay-per-view industry. Ordering
information and up-to-the minute racing information is
available at www.hbo.com.
No Penalties From
Martinsville Incident
NASCAR will not levy any
penalties against Bill Davis Racing or Billy Ballew
Motorsports for the crew's shoving match that occurred at
Martinsville speedway on Saturday.
Map to North Carolina
Race Shops
A new pull-out map featuring all of
North Carolina's NASCAR Sprint Cup race shops is now
available from the Cabarrus County Convention & Visitors
Bureau as part of its free, newly released annual Visitors
Guide. The map contains directions to the race shops, a
description of each, and the hours the race shops are open
to visitors. Also included on the map are descriptions of
major stops along The Dale Trail, a self-guided tour of
landmarks relating to Dale Earnhardt's life and NASCAR
career in and around Kannapolis, the NASCAR legend's
hometown.
Cabarrus County is home to
the world's largest concentration of motorsports
attractions, including Lowe's Motor Speedway, the
superspeedway most drivers call home. Sprint Cup teams based
in Cabarrus County or nearby include Roush Fenway Racing,
Hendrick Motorsports, Yates Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing with
Felix Sebates, Haas CNC Racing, Wood Brothers Racing, Dale
Earnhardt Inc., Joe Gibbs Racing, Michael Waltrip's
Raceworld USA, Team Red Bull, Penske Racing and BAM Racing.
Still within North Carolina and within an hour's drive are
even more - Richard Childress Racing, Bill Davis Racing,
Richard Petty Museum and Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
The area's rich racing heritage draws
increasing numbers of visitors every year to see what goes
on behind the scenes between the races. Visitors watch the
cars being built at the race shops, tour legendary Lowe's
Motor Speedway, explore the area's many motorsports museums
and ride shotgun in a NASCAR racecar around the speedway
track with a professional driver at speeds up to 165 miles
an hour. Where else can fans get so close and personal with
restrictor plates and valve covers? Watch a pit crew train?
Lunch with members of a race team dining at the next table?
Maybe, even, run into a NASCAR superstar for an autograph
and a handshake?
"When it comes to NASCAR,
we have the real deal, but many of our greatest NASCAR
treasures are off the beaten path," explains DeSales Wagster,
president and CEO of the Cabarrus County Convention &
Visitors Bureau. "Our destination guide with its
comprehensive race shop map is the one tool fans must have
to plan their ultimate racing experience."
For more information or a free copy of
the new Cabarrus County NC visitors guide and pull-out map
to the race shops, phone 800-848-3740 or visit
www.visitcabarrus.com
Berlin Raceway Cancelled
Tonight's Opening Night races have been postponed due to
inclement weather. The races will be made up next week, on
Saturday, April 19, in place of the previously scheduled
events for that night.
The Opening Night events included Coors Light Late Model,
Engine Pro Super Stock, De-Jay Slick Truck Pro Stock and
Instant Cash Advance Sportsman divisions racing in their
first points races of the 2008 season. Those four divisions
will take the track next Saturday, April 19, for the season
opener. The original price of tickets to April 19 was $10;
with the revised schedule, tickets for April 19 will be $13.
Children 6-12 are half price and 5 and under are free.
Fans who have tickets dated April 12 may exchange those
tickets for tickets to any other race of the same value
($13) this season. Fans who already have tickets for the
April 19 originally scheduled event ($10) will have their
tickets honored for the new Opening Night event.
The April 19 events originally included Pro Stock, Sportsman
and the debut of the new Burnips Equipment 4-Cylinder
division. The Pro Stock and Sportsman races are cancelled
due to the Opening Night lineup which already includes those
two divisions. The 4-Cylinder race originally scheduled for
April 19 will be added to the May 17 lineup, so that
division will not lose a race date.
Tickets for all events for the 2008 Berlin Raceway season
presented by Comerica Bank are on sale now and can be
purchased online at www.berlinraceway.com or by phone to
Berlin Raceway at (616) 677-5000. Tickets are also available
in person at the Fifth Third Ballpark box office (4500 West
River Drive, Comstock Park) from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday
through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, or at
the Berlin Raceway administrative office Monday through
Friday (please call ahead for an appointment if going to
Berlin's administrative office). On racedays, tickets are
available at the Berlin Raceway box office beginning at
11:15.
Johnny
Benson, Jr. - NASCAR's Longest Overnight Success Story
By: Vito Pugliese
There are, to
be sure, a number of unsung heroes in
NASCAR. You can find them in a number of capacities
with many in the more obvious sources: pit crew members, the
guys in the fabrication shop, tire specialists, transporter
drivers, or even the person in charge of preparing food for
the team. These positions are all to be celebrated and
honored, as there is no task too great or too small in
racing to go unrecognized. In that same vein, there are many
drivers who do not get the recognition that they rightly
deserve. That notion brought to mind one driver in
particular: Johnny Benson, Jr.
As of
this writing, Benson currently sits in ninth in the
Craftsman Truck Series point standings
after losing four spots courtesy of Sprint Cup regular Kyle
Busch, who made an ill-advised attempt to pass Benson for
second place on the final lap in the Kroger 250. Even after
the incident, however, Benson remains solidly in position to
challenge for the Craftsman Truck Series Championship.
Should he win the title, he would become just the third
driver to win titles in both the Nationwide and Truck
Series.
Now, you may
be asking just when Benson ever won a Nationwide (or a Busch
Series) title. That would be way back in 1995, at a time
when Cup regulars competed only sporadically throughout the
season, never attempting an all-out assault on the
championship. Benson won two races that season, propelling
him into the big time where he succeeded Michael Waltrip in
the then-familiar yellow No. 30 Pennzoil Pontiacs of Bahari
Racing the following year. Benson won Rookie of the Year
honors as a Cup rookie in ’96. and even found himself in
position to win the Brickyard 400 until a pit road miscue
with a handful of laps remaining denied him what looked to
be his first victory in the series.
Unfortunately, that win would have to wait a few more years.
Several, actually. Following a two-year stint at
Bahari that produced zero wins despite numerous strong runs,
Benson fielded what was to become the fourth car in Roush
Racing’s five-car juggernaut in 1998. Having missed the
Daytona 500 due to an accident in one
of the qualifying races and having no previous years owner’s
points, Benson and company rebounded to post eight Top 10
finishes in the season’s first eleven races. Unfortunately,
that’s where things went awry.
The remainder
of the season produced only three additional Top-10s, and
things were so bleak that Steve Hmiel, one of the founding
members of Jack Roush’s racing empire, left the team. Things
did not get much better the next year, as Benson rode the
crew chief carousel to a pair of Top 10s while serving as
the R&D mule for the new in-house RoushKraft chassis. Benson
exited at season’s end, and the No. 26 team was dissolved.
In 2000, that
left Benson coming to Daytona in an unsponsored white
Pontiac — the remnants of what once was the Tim Beverley
team with Darrell Waltrip behind the wheel. He ran
competitively during Speedweeks and landed a sponsor on the
eve of the 500 in Lycos.com, although the sponsorship was
worth little more than the price of the decal itself. But
that didn’t stop Benson; he ran well in the 500, and with 42
laps to go, put the No. 10 machine on the point. The irony
was lost on no one, as Benson took the lead from former
Roush teammate Mark Martin and looked primed to do the
impossible: win the Daytona 500 with a new team in an
essentially unsponsored car. But the irresistible force of a
train of Fords was Benson’s undoing when a late-race caution
forced a restart; Dale Jarrett wrestled the lead from him,
and Benson slid back to 12th at the finish. The team
continued to impress as the season wore on, though, despite
being a single-car outfit with minimal sponsorship — not
exactly tops on the General Motors totem pole.
The Tim
Beverley-owned operation was absorbed by Nelson Bowers
before the 2001 season, and became part of the
MBV Motorsports franchise (later
MB2 Racing). Benson acquired the longtime sponsor of the No.
6 Roush Ford, Valvoline, who also secured part ownership of
the operation at the time. Turned out it was for the best,
as Beverly was later convicted of money laundering and
fraud.
In the
meantime, his former team soldiered on, as Benson snatched
defeat from the jaws of victory on several occasions in ’01.
Pit issues often derailed the team that was headed by one of
the most brilliant young minds in racing at the time, James
Ince. The team did manage to win the Winston Open that year
after Ryan Newman’s engine expired in grand fashion, and it
seemed it would not be long until Benson finally captured a
points-paying victory that had been so long in coming.
Returning to
action after being injured twice during the middle portion
of the 2002 season, Benson ran second to Kurt Busch at the
fall Martinsville event. Two weeks later, he found himself
in position to win once again, this time at Rockingham.
Ironically, it came down to a battle between Benson and the
two top guns at Roush Racing, Kurt Busch and Mark Martin.
Benson held off Martin over the final few laps to claim his
first and only win to date in the Sprint Cup Series. It was
welcomed medicine for a driver and team who had fought so
hard, doing more with less and managing to build something
out of what had been nothing just a couple of years earlier.
Benson’s team
had planned the mother of all burnouts for the special
occasion. Following the obligatory donuts, the team had
planned to run onto the track, flip the car over, and spin
it around on its roof. NASCAR got
wind of the idea, though, and kept the team from performing
the most bizarre race-winning ritual ever witnessed.
The next
season would be Benson’s last in the Cup Series. Poor
performance was the result of General Motors’ decision to
not invest further in the newly-redesigned Grand Prix that
only a handful of smaller, less competitive teams ran.
Benson struggled, and he was unceremoniously ousted with a
year remaining on his contract to James Rocco in favor of a
younger driver in Scott Riggs — essentially falling victim
to the “Young Gun” craze of the day. Benson finished strong,
though, wheeling the Valvoline Pontiac to a fourth-place
finish in the final race of 2003 at Homestead, his last to
date in a full-time capacity on the Sprint Cup circuit.
Since that
time, Benson has competed in the Craftsman Truck Series,
reinventing himself yet again. What was once a stepping
stone to both Nationwide and Cup level racing, the Truck
Series has, in recent years, become the Senior Tour of sorts
for NASCAR. Drivers such as Mike
Skinner, Todd Bodine, Ted Musgrave, and the late Bobby
Hamilton, Sr. helped add legitimacy to the series. Benson
has been a driving force behind Toyota’s involvement since
he joined the circuit in 2004, piloting his No. 23 Bill
Davis Tundra to nine wins thus far.
Benson has
won the Most Popular Driver award in the Truck Series the
last two years, proving that nice guys do indeed finish
first every now and then. And with any luck — something that
has been sorely missing throughout Benson’s
NASCAR career — there will be many
more wins and awards to come. If he can avoid late race
mishaps such as those at Martinsville this past weekend,
NASCAR’s longest overnight success story, that of Johnny
Benson, Jr., may possibly claim a much-deserved championship
in 2008.
If You Can Beat'em,
Spin'em
By: Allen Madding
Kyle “Rowdy” Busch was set to finish in third place in his
No. 51 Miccosukee Toyota going into the last lap of the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Kroger 250 at Martinsville,
Virginia on Saturday. Busch positioned himself within inches
of the back bumper of Johnny Benson’s No. 23 truck going
down the backstretch.
Fans in the
grandstands, watching on television, and members of the
media all watched intently as they expected something to
happen. Not to let anyone down, Busch made one of his
legendary career defining moves getting into the left rear
corner of Benson’s truck and spinning him entering Turn 3.
Busch then jumped on the brakes to miss Benson and planned
on diving to his inside to grab a cheap second place finish.
But, Busch’s devious plan was foiled by Matt Crafton, who
got into the back of Kyle Busch, and sent him spinning as
well.
NASCAR scored
Benson with a 25th place finish and Busch a 26th place
finish after the altercation.
Benson’s crew
was justifiably irritated by having a second place finish
stolen from them by dirty driving antics of the younger
Busch brother. They waited for him on pit road and expressed
their discontent through his window net when he had to stop
for traffic on pit road after the checkered flag had fallen.
In the after
race interview, Busch claimed he had a right to be upset
with getting spun after spinning Benson, and then elected to
chastise Benson’s crew for their display on pit road.
Busch’s
comments came across almost comical. After intentionally
spinning someone on the last lap, he is irritated that he
was spun, and he thinks Benson’s team was out of line.
What is it
about Kyle Busch that makes him think he can do anything he
wants, stoop to any level, drive as dirty as he wishes, and
there will be no consequences? Perhaps he has forgotten his
unpopularity in the Legends Series where his “spin ‘em to
win” driving style did not garner him many friends among
fellow competitors.
Busch does
not have any real stake in the Truck Series. He is competing
in the Truck Series for fun. He is not racing for the NASCAR
Craftsman Truck Series Championship. He is not even racing
for earnings, as he is not collecting any salary driving the
No. 51.
Johnny Benson
on the other hand is racing fulltime in the Truck Series.
His finishing position affects his income for the week and
his points toward the year-end championship. Kyle Busch’s
move on the last lap dropped Benson 23 positions, which will
make a significant drop in his point standings and in what
he collects from the team for his part of the winnings.
Busch made it
clear that he would not give it a second thought to make the
same kind of move again if he was in the same position. A
little respect for his fellow competitors would go a long
way. If someone in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series does not
teach him how to respect his fellow competitors soon,
someone in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series may just drive
the point home.
Kyle Busch's Antics
Costly to Benson
By: Steve
Kaminski
If your brother is Kurt Busch, and Kurt is considered the
mature, intelligent, warm and fuzzy one, than ... Do I
really need a punch line to finish that joke?
Of course, I'm talking about
Kyle Busch, a driver who I feel is sometimes judged a little
too harshly. However, someone else can defend him this time.
If you missed the last couple
of laps of Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at
Martinsville,
you can
watch it on YouTube.
Grand Rapids
driver Johnny Benson was running second and Busch third
heading out of the third turn on the final lap, and neither
had a shot at overtaking eventual winner Dennis Setzer.
Then Busch
something stupid. He dove underneath Benson where there was
no room to pass and ended up taking them both out. Instead
of a two-three finish, Benson and Busch had to settle for
25th and 26th place finishes, respectively.
Fox analyst
Darrell Waltrip called Busch's move uncalled for, then
continued with his criticism during Sunday's NASCAR Sprint
Cup prerace show, saying "Busch goes over the edge when he
really doesn't need to."
I couldn't
agree more with Waltrip.
I'm really
disappointed with Busch because I don't see him as this
immature, arrogant 22-year-old kid a lot of people accuse
him of being. I talked with him when he came through Berlin
Raceway with the American Speed Association when he was just
17 years old, and he returned to race in a Late Model race
there at Benson's invitation two summers ago.
I liked him,
and I liked him even more when he visited St. John's Home of
Grand Rapids during his visit two years ago. He then went
home and created the Kyle Busch Foundation, in which the
children at St. John's Home are the recipient of his hard
work and contributions.
Drivers make
mistakes on the track, especially the ones the size of
Martinsville, so he's not the first one to do something
stupid on a short-track. But what really annoyed me
Saturday was his cavalier attitude about the accident in his
post-race interview.
He should have apologized,
then ducked into his hauler.
But no.
"My move is
probably a pretty stupid move, people will call it," Busch
said on Fox. "But I'm a racer and I'm going after another
spot. I'm not happy with a third-place finish. I'm going to
go for second if I got a spot I think I can get for second.
Obviously, stuff happens on the race track that happens on a
race track. That's how I see it."
Busch
admitted he forced the issue, if you listened carefully to
his comments. "I got a good run off of two and thought
I could make a hole there in three," Busch said.
Busch didn't
see a hole. He was trying to make one.
And worst of
all, he called out Benson's pit crew for trying to retaliate
after the race. Fox analyst Jeff Hammond was backing Busch
up on that one, leaving me once again longing for the days
of Benny Parsons and Ned Jarrett.
"It's pretty
pathetic that pit crew guys want to fight over what's
happened on the race track between the drivers," Busch said.
"That's just not acceptable. That's stupid."
No Kyle. You're wrong again.
The pit crews
have it a lot tougher than the drivers, who can fly in with
their families on Thursday nights and spend the whole
weekend together in their cushy motor home. Crews work all
week in the shop, head to the track, sleep in hotels, and
they are usually the first ones at the track and among the
last ones to leave.
Busch's
blunder cost Benson 83 points, and it dropped him to ninth
in the standings. If Busch would have used his head, Benson
would have left Martinsville third in the standings, 61
behind the front-running Busch.
This was a
serious shot to Benson's title hopes. They only have 25
races in Craftsman Trucks, and I went back looking through
the records since 1999, and no driver has come from this far
back after four races to win the Craftsman Truck
championship.
Keep in mind
that Busch is only running about 15 of the Craftsman Trucks
races, so whether he had finished second or third Saturday
really won't going to matter to him in the end.
You say he is
running for the owners championship and was trying to gain
five extra points? If he was really concerned about the
owners points, he wouldn't have made such a stupid move.
Nascar
Hauler Busy After Race
Kyle Busch paid a visit to the NASCAR hauler
after Saturday’s Kroger 250 Craftsman Truck
Series race at Martinsville Speedway, where he
wrecked Johnny Benson on the last lap while
racing for second place.
NASCAR officials also talked with several
members of Benson’s crew, who angrily confronted
Busch’s crew on pit road after the race. NASCAR
officials said they are reviewing the actions of
several members of Benson’s crew.
After the race, Benson was angry that he got
wrecked and fell from second place to 25th,
while Busch was angry that Benson’s crewmembers
were angry.
“I just got spun out,” said Benson, who unlike
Busch is racing for a series championship. “I
went into the corner as hard as I’d been all day
and doing everything we needed to do. The 51
(Kyle Busch) - you know I don’t know. It’s just
a shame that it had to happen. It happens a lot
within this series. It’s just a shame that
nothing ever gets done about it. Asked what he
thought should be done, Benson added, “You have
got to penalize people for wrecking people. That
is what needs to be done.”
“I hate it
that we both spun out there. I was probably going to make it
through there but then I got spun out, too, so I’ve got a
reason to be upset,” said Busch, who held on to the NCTS
points lead despite finishing 26th. It started with
me, obviously, but it’s pretty pathetic that pit crew guys
want to fight when what happened is between the drivers,”
Busch said. “That’s just unacceptable and stupid. My move
was probably a pretty stupid move, people will call it, but,
hey, I’m a racer. I’m going after another spot.”
Head and Neck Cancer Awareness
Lori Hamilton, wife of the late
NASCAR racing legend Bobby Hamilton, is urging Americans to
get screened for cancer during the 2008 Oral, Head and Neck
Cancer Awareness Week (OHANCAW), April 21-27. The week is
highlighted by free screenings at more than 150 medical
centers nationwide.
Bobby Hamilton, the 2004
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion and a four-time
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner, died in January 2007 from
complications of head and neck cancer at the age of 49.
According to the American Cancer Society, this year more
than 40,000 Americans will be diagnosed with cancers of the
head and neck – which include cancers of the oral cavity,
larynx and pharynx – and 7,550 will die.
"When Bobby was diagnosed he immediately
became an advocate of early detection of head and neck
cancer," said Lori Hamilton. "He asked everyone around him
to get tested, promoted it to anyone who would listen and
became a huge believer in the screening process. It doesn't
hurt, is free and the 10 minutes it takes to do it could
save your life. So we are encouraging everyone to please
take advantage of this free screening opportunity."
For more information and to find a
screening site near you log onto
www.OHANCAW.com.
"When diagnosed very early, oral and other head and neck
cancers can be more easily treated without significant
complications, and the chances of survival greatly
increase," said Steven Roser, D.M.D., M.D, DeLos Professor
and Chief, Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery,
Department of Surgery, Emory University School of Medicine,
Atlanta and Medical Director of the Georgia Chapter of the
Yul Brynner Head and Neck Cancer Foundation. "However, many
Americans do not recognize the symptoms of these cancers,
which makes screening very important, especially for those
who are at high risk, such as tobacco and alcohol users."
There has recently been an increasing incidence of some of
these cancers in young adults who do not smoke and some
researchers have revealed an association with oral human
papillomavirus (HPV) infection, due possibly to an increase
in oral sex among young people.
The
Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network
Walk for Food Allergy: Moving Towards A Cure
They need your help, and you don't want to miss this!
Note: This charity is close to the JBFC's heart.
We hope that one day a cure will found ....
Download
country music sensation Trace Adkins’ live recording of the
hit single “You’re Gonna Miss This” from
iTunes between March 27 and April 10,
2008 to support the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network.
Trace Adkins
appeared on “The Celebrity Apprentice” raising awareness for
the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN), and will
reprise his role as the 2008 National Honorary Chair of
FAAN’s Walk for Food Allergy.
“I know
firsthand how important FAAN’s efforts to increase funding
for food allergy education and research are,” says Trace,
whose 6-year-old daughter Brianna is allergic to milk, eggs,
peanuts, and tree nuts. He and his family turn to FAAN for
help managing Brianna’s food allergies, and now Trace is
helping FAAN.
You can help
Trace Adkins support FAAN. Purchase “You’re Gonna Miss This”
from
iTunes for only 99 cents. Proceeds from
this promotion will be donated to FAAN to use for food
allergy education and research.
Buy your copy today, and make sure to
tell your friends and family to do the same. These are some
good times and you don’t want to miss this!
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